Johnny Ludlow Author:Ellen Wood Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: BANKER'S VISIT. His name was Sanker, and he was related to Mrs. Todhetley. Not expecting to go home for the holidays —for his people lived in some far-off dis... more »trict of Wales, and did not afford him the journey—Tod invited him to spend them with us at Dyke Manor: which was uncommonly generous, for he disliked Sanker beyond everything. Having plenty of money himself, Tod could not bear that a connection of his should be known as nearly the poorest and meanest in the school, and resented it awfully. But he could not be ill- natured, for all his prejudices, and he asked Sanker to go home with us. " It's slow there," he said; " not much going on in summer besides haymaking; but it may be an improvement on this. So, if you'd like to come, I'll write and tell them." "Thank you," said Sanker; "I should like it very much." Things had been queer at school as the term drew to its close. Petty pilferings were taking place; articles and money alike disappeared. Tod lost half- a-sovereign; one of the masters some silver ; Bill Whitney put sevenpence halfpenny and a set of enamelled studs into his desk one day, never to see either again; and Snepp, who had been home to his sister's marriage, lost a piece of wedding-cake out ofhis box the night he came back. There was a thief in the school, and no clue to him. One might mentally accuse this fellow, another that; but not a shadow of proof was there against any. Altogether we were not sorry to get away. But the curious thing was, that soon after we got home pilferings began there. Ned Sanker was well received; and Tod, regarding himself in the capacity of host, grew more cordial with him than he had been at school. It was a sort of noblesse oblige feeling. Sanker was sixteen; stout and round ; not tall; with pale eyes and a dull face....« less